RISE OF THE BLACK BAT (2012)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *uncanny*
MYTHICITY: *poor*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *adventure*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *sociological*

I wanted to like this adaptation of the old prose-pulp crimefighter The Black Bat. The most famous version of the character debuted the same year as Batman, though the two characters were probably conceived independently. The Bat was also one of the first "blind crimefighters." In an origin that probably influenced the story of Bat-foe Two-Face, crusading prosecutor Tony Quinn is attacked by a criminal who blinds him with acid. However, in Quinn's case, a special operation endows the lawyer with renewed sight, including the ability to see in the dark. He then takes on the persona of the Black Bat to bring down both the men who blinded him and many other evildoers.

The script by one Trevor (JURASSIC SHARK) Payer reproduces the basic scenario accurately. Prior to launching a major case against the strangely named gang-boss Oliver Snate (yes, that's the name in the pulp story), Quinn (Jody Haucke) is blinded by acid. Carol, a young woman who loathes Snate for killing her father, sponsors an experimental operation. After the operation is done, Quinn finds that he can see perfectly in the dark (nothing's said about him seeing in the light). This inspires him to take on a bat-like vigilante persona and to go after criminals, culminating in his taking down Snate.

 The hero's costume is serviceable and there's even some decent background music. However, everything else-- the locations, the feeble action-scenes, and the direction by Brett Kelly-- is strictly from hunger. Worse, none of the actors can act. And for that matter, the script doesn't bear close scrutiny. Prior to Quinn being blinded, he confers with a mousy young woman who's apparently his intern or something. Seemingly introduced as a support-character, she turns out to be the one who blinds him-- and then disappears from the narrative. 

To be sure, I've read the first few tales of the prose hero, and they weren't that memorable, so the Black Bat wasn't a great classic of the pulp days. But there was some genuine potential in the original series, and RISE doesn't come close to realizing it.